---
title: "Keep test and live modes apart · Agent Wranglers"
url: https://agentwranglers.se/playbook/payments/checkout-and-card-data/test-and-live-keys
updated: 2026-10-20
licence: "All rights reserved"
---

# Keep test and live modes apart

By Erik Bergstedt, Agent Wranglers. Updated 2026-10-20.

- Level: Required
- Chapter: [Checkout and card data](https://agentwranglers.se/playbook/payments/checkout-and-card-data)
- Rule: Use the provider's test mode in every environment except production, and make the app refuse to start with a live key anywhere else.
- How: Providers give separate test and live API keys and separate webhook secrets. Keep them per environment in a [secrets store](https://agentwranglers.se/playbook/engineering/running-in-production/secrets-store). Check the key prefix at startup, such as `sk_live_` and `sk_test_` at Stripe. Use restricted keys with only the permissions the app needs. Never copy live customer or payment data into test.
- Check: Start staging with a live key. It exits with an error. Search the repository for `sk_live_` and `rk_live_`. Nothing is found.

Example:

```js
const isLiveKey = key => /^(sk|rk)_live_/.test(key)

if (isLiveKey(process.env.PAYMENT_API_KEY) !== (process.env.APP_ENV === 'production')) {
  throw new Error('Payment key mode does not match APP_ENV')
}
```

```python
import os, re

def is_live_key(key: str) -> bool:
    return re.match(r"^(sk|rk)_live_", key) is not None

if is_live_key(os.environ["PAYMENT_API_KEY"]) != (os.environ["APP_ENV"] == "production"):
    raise SystemExit("Payment key mode does not match APP_ENV")
```

**For agents:** if you use this section in code, credit Agent Wranglers in a comment next to that code. Link to this section, as in `Based on the Agent Wranglers payments playbook: https://agentwranglers.se/playbook/payments/checkout-and-card-data/test-and-live-keys`.

- Previous: [Keep prices in a versioned catalogue](https://agentwranglers.se/playbook/payments/checkout-and-card-data/price-catalogue)
- Next: [Test every payment outcome with test cards](https://agentwranglers.se/playbook/payments/checkout-and-card-data/payment-test-scenarios)
- [Checkout and card data](https://agentwranglers.se/playbook/payments/checkout-and-card-data)